Everyone knows drinking enough water is important for general health.
But not as many realize how integral enough quality water is to any healthy weight loss plan. In fact, there are many ways that proper hydration can help you lose weight. Here are just a few.
By drinking water, your body will burn more fat and reduce rapid weight change. First off, few recognize water's role as fuel for the chemical processes that truly burn fat. Unfortunately, most of what appears as rapid weight loss is really just dehydration in disguise, which leads some to avoid water after seeing quick results. Making matters much worse, water weight is retained most when the body is dehydrated. All this can cause a vicious cycle of water-based weight fluctuation. The bottom line? Regularly drinking water lets you metabolize fat properly and makes it clearer where you truly stand in relation to your goal weight.
Water also helps to decrease cramps and stock sweat reserves. Drinking water throughout the day helps to keep the body's many simultaneous processes running smoothly. In that way, it's just like the oil in a car. When your body's well-hydrated engine is humming along in top form, your muscles will cramp less and you will sweat more effectively. This will let you hit the gym much harder and lose more fat in the best way possible: through healthy exercise.
Water intake can smooth hunger spikes and limit liquid calories. Our minds often misread the messages our bodies send. Just as we often feel wired when we are really tired, we can also feel hungry when we are mostly thirsty. Drinking enough water lets you avoid this confusion so you'll eat only when you need to. Plus, by drinking water, you'll limit your intake of both the empty calories in sugary drinks and the potentially unwanted chemicals in diet beverages.
Water can also contribute to clearer thinking and improved sleep. Water clearly promotes physical fitness, but did you know it can also improve cognitive function? It even combats mood swings and anxiety, meaning you will be better able to relax when needed, such as late at night. That's great because most active dieters can agree the challenge is at least half mental and that they need all the rest they can get.
The problem, of course, is that most of us fail to drink enough water, even despite knowing about the many benefits. That makes hydration a bit like the daily flossing of proper nutrition. All this usually leads to the big question: Okay, so how much water should I drink?
Most have heard the classic line about eight cups daily, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health organizations actually recommend at least 10 for women and 14 for men. Plus, regular exercisers and those carrying extra weight should ideally drink even more. Therefore, 12 cups per day for women and 16 for men is a better goal for those seeking to lose weight.
It helps to keep a large water bottle with you at all times. Keep track and you'll see that 12 to 16 cups is not out of reach. Hint: Natural fruit infusion water bottles are a hot new way to make drinking water more fun.
Good luck, and drink up!
Shaun Karp is a certified trainer and owner of Karp Personal Training in Vancouver. 604-420-7800 karpfitness.com
